Happy Birthday Naru!
by beelzenef2010
Summary: It's Naru's birthday and Mai finds herself still without a present! Will she find one in time? Naru/Mai pairing ch3.
1. The day of the Birthday

**AN: Okay, so cut me some slack, this is my first fanfiction since... god knows when, and hoppppeeefulllyyy it should turn out alright? OH and if I get any of the facts/details wrong then just tell me, 'cos I'm working my way through the manga after watching the anime series **** Enjoy!**

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In her whole year of working at SPR, Mai Taniyama had never not wanted to go to work the way she did today.

Today was Naru's birthday, and she still hadn't gotten him anything! She'd stayed up the whole night racking her brain to come up with the most amazing gift ever. Still no luck. It was 4:30am.

The rest of the team, Bou-san, Matsuzaki, John and Masako had all put in a tremendous amount of effort into searching for the right present, or so Masako said. Apparently, she has for him "the most perfect and amazing present." This upset Mai, as how could they find it so easy to choose a present for the most secretive, selfish narcissist in the world!

Mai lay there in her bed, her hair messy as usual, listening to the sounds of the cars driving past her apartment block. Naru meant a lot to her, and if she couldn't get him anything, then would he hate her for it? I mean, it's not like Naru would be expecting any presents... right? He didn't even tell anyone it was his birthday, the gang only found out by begging Lin to tell them. Lin! _I wonder what he got him_, she thought. _Something nerdy, like a new camera or recording equipment probably._ _Or maybe he didn't get anything as he does enough for Naru already?_ Mai began to get a headache. Why was it so hard to find a present for your boss, who also happens to be a narcissist, and also the man you are in love with? Of course he didn't know that. He'd probably just give her one of those Naru looks.

After a few more minutes, she turned to face her alarm clock. 5:00. She listened once again to the cars driving past. This was usually the time that Naru set off to work. Maybe if she got there early, and asked him what he wanted...? He'd probably just shrug and order her to make some tea? Or would she see a glint of disappointment in his eyes as he realises that Mai didn't bother with his birthday? No, no, no, she couldn't do that! There was no way she could face him without a present and watch everyone else shower him with their gifts!

Mai jumped out of bed and took a shower. _Maybe a warm shower will refresh my mind,_ she pondered. After a good few minutes, she stepped out, wrapped a towel round herself, and took a look in the mirror. _Mai, Mai, Mai, why do you have to be so brainless! _she said to the twin staring back at her. _There has to be SOMETHING I can get! Think Mai, think..._

She thought about it all the way through brushing her teeth and drying her hair. She looked in the mirror again. _Hmm, maybe I'll curl my hair today, I haven't done that in a while,_ she thought, picking up the curler. _And a little makeup wouldn't hurt... would it?_ After that, she took another look at herself. She walked to her closet, and pulled out a cute black dress, after all, John told her they were going out for lunch, so why not get dressed up? After getting changed, Mai put a little pink bow in her hair, and slipped into a pair of brand new ballet shoes. She didn't at all look like she had tried too hard, but she did for once in her life feel... sexy. Mai grinned at herself and grabbed her bag with her files for SPR, and forgetting her breakfast, locked up her apartment, and headed down to the main street.

A few blocks away from SPR, Mai Tanyama remembered._ THE PRESENT!_ _I was so caught up in my appearance that I forgot all about Naru!_ she cursed at herself. _Oh Mai, why are you so brainless, you silly girl!_ Mai turned the corner, and she could see Shibuya Psychic Research up ahead. Naru's van was parked outside. There was no sign of the others though... well, it was only 5:40.

Mai grumbled and cursed herself more while climbing the stairs to SPR. _Naru surely wouldn't mind right? He isn't the birthday kind of guy. But he'd certainly be expecting something from me wouldn't he?_ She sighed. There was no doubt that everyone else at SPR knew of her crush on a certain someone. She dragged her feet along the floor for the last few meters, and then turned the knob of the front door and let herself inside.

"Who's there?" a gruff voice flowed in from Naru's office. Mai was right, he was here.

"Who do you think silly!" Mai responded, her voice a little shaky.

"Why are you here so early?" Naru popped his head round his office door. As usual, he was clad in black jeans, and a black shirt, but today his dark eyes had a tint of sapphire in them. Mai spent this moment savouring every part of him, before she looked into those dark irises. He seemed to be checking her out. Mai felt her face burning up.

"Um, Lin told me it was your birthday today." she said.

There was a slight pause, and the corners of Naru's mouth twitched. Was that a smile?

"Yes, you are correct. Well done." Naru stated matter-of-factly.

Mai blushed a deeper shade of red. How could she tell him that she didn't have a present? She looked away. She felt footsteps getting closer to her. Naru placed his hand on her shoulder.

"Mai, tea."

_WELL, HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU THEN_ she thought. _Nothing ever changes for him! Grrrrr!_ She continued to mumble to herself as she made the tea, and as Naru retreated back to his office. _How could someone not be bothered about his birthday? I mean, he'd expect me of all people to get him a present right? He didn't seem so excited at all! Or is that a good thing... since I don't have a present at all... _

Her thoughts continued long after she had sheepishly delivered the tea to Naru, and began sifting through the piles of documents on her table. _Maybe I'll just have a nap_...

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"Naru!"

Mai was woken up to the sounds of Bou-san, Matsuzaki and John rampaging through the front office and through to Naru's room. Lin looked a little taken-aback, as his co-workers ran past him to reach the birthday boy. _When did Lin arrive?_ Mai wondered. She checked the clock. 7:30 it read. Usually the time the others arrived, so that means Lin would have been here for over an hour. He probably laughed at her napping on the office chair on the way in. That instant, the front door opened, and in came Masako, balancing four neatly wrapped boxes in her arms.

"Mai? Help?"

"Coming!" Mai hopped out of her desk chair and ran to help Masako, and caught a present just as it almost slid from the top of the pile.

"Are the others with Naru?" she asked.

Mai sighed. "Yes, they've gone to say Happy Birthday I'm guessing."

"Where's your present for Naru?" Masako questioned, with a sneaky grin in her eye.

Masako was a nice, quiet girl, but sometimes Mai could sense a bit of evil in her. _Nobody can be perfect, and Masako clearly isn't_ she thought to herself.

"You look... nice by the way." Masako said.

Mai didn't realise until then that Masako was wearing a cute dress too, a red strapless dress down to about mid-thigh. She didn't think Masako was the short dress kind of girl, but you learn something new every day right?

"Yeah, you look great too!" Mai smiled. She hadn't noticed what Ayako was wearing on the way in, but she could be sure it would be something short and sexy too._ Sigh, I better get in there and watch the present ceremony then_... and with that, she followed Masako into Naru's office, where plenty of conversation was taking place. Even Lin had joined in, and was laughing with everyone else.

"I wonder what all the fun is about," Masako said.

The girls walked in on something that almost made them drop the presents they were carrying. Naru was holding up a red g-string*, and Lin was stood next to him almost wetting himself.

"... Lin."

"AHAHA yes, Naru darling?"

"... tell me why I would want this." Naru said.

The others were crying with laughter, and Masako and Mai joined in soon after. It seemed like it was going to be an interesting day. But Mai still didn't have a present!

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**AN: ... silly ending I know, but I've been busy all day while I've been writing this, so I've run out of ideas at the present moment, but I doooo know what Mai wants to give him for Christmas, but I might change that if people give me some wacky crazy ideas ;) Or some romantic ones, either way hehe. I just felt like Lin needed some devilish, bad boy in him bahahaha.**

***g-string: Well, I'm Australian, so we call them g-strings, for those who call it a thong, it's a thong. An underwear thong. For women. ;)**


	2. Present time!

**AN: Wooo! Thanks to Redrosesthroughbrowneyes, I now know when Naru's birthday is (hehe I should really research that before I start to write, but my brain was just bursting with interesting ideas) and thanks to dutchangel1979 and to Amu Tsukiyomi for being my first three reviewers!**

**Enjoy chapter two!**

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Throughout the rest of the day, Mai couldn't shake the image of Naru holding that g-string. Each time she caught a glimpse at him, she couldn't help but to splutter, and burst into a fit of giggles. The present ceremony went great, everyone had bought Naru a gift that was very... un-Naru ish, and when it was Mai's turn to present her gift... well.

"_HAHA Naru, got some steamy nights ahead of you eh?" Bou-san laughed._

_Naru grunted, and threw the g-string at him._

"_Very funny Lin," Naru glared at Lin, who was still crying at the sight of Naru. He wiped his eyes on his shirt._

"_You're a sight for sore eyes, Naru." Lin told him. "I think you'd make a beautiful woman."_

_With that, the staff of SPR burst out laughing once again, while Naru sat calmly in his chair, clearly dreading the other gifts Masako had to offer._

"_Yes, yes, very funny Lin." Naru said, emotionless. "Let's get the rest of this over with so we can get back to work."_

"_Aw Naru! You're no fun!" Ayako giggled. "Liven up, the weather is surprisingly great for fall, you're a growing man, and you need a little excitement in your life! Unwrap the rest of your gifts, and let's go out for the day!"_

_Mai stood there, still feeling a little unnerved at the fact that she had nothing to give Naru, but hopefully if she could drag this ceremony out a little longer, she could think of something. _Maybe he'd like some aftershave?_ she pondered. _No, no NO Mai! That's a terrible idea! How about a brand new pair of jeans? ... What are you thinking Mai?

"_Hey Naru, these ones are from Ayako and myself" Monk said, handing Naru two medium sized packages._

_Naru took the packages hesitantly, and placed them on his desk._

"_Which one first?" he asked slyly._

_Ayako looked at Monk, "Hmm... that one?" she said, pointing at the present on top._

_Naru slid his finger into an open space in the wrapping, and tearing off the tape, he slowly unravelled the gift. Seeing Naru do this made Mai smile. He could be a bit of a bitch at times, but he does have a delicate, gentle side to him. _I'd just tear off the wrapping_ she thought. The gang were all watching Naru's face, as he lifted from the wrapping a brightly coloured Hawaiian shirt, covered in pineapples, flora and a sea of rainbow fish. Mai began to giggle. Infact, in about a second, the whole room was filled with laughter, Monk's deep booming laugh, and even Masako's high pitched giggles. Lin couldn't take it anymore, and had to run to get some tissues. _Naru's face is PRICELESS!

_He sat there, holding up the shirt, taking in every bit of the blinding colours, then lay it gently on his lap, watching his employees in hysterics. His lips twitched slightly, and Mai could have sworn it was a smile. Or at the very least, a smirk. He waited till his friends cooled down, and calmly he opened his mouth._

"_Well, Monk, you certainly have a good sense in fashion" he said cooly._

_Ayako laughed, "Yeah, Monk said that he shops there regularly!"_

_At that moment, Lin returned with a box of tissues, which was almost all used up to dry everyone's tears but Naru's._

"_So, open the other one then, you nutter." Monk said._

_Naru reluctantly picked up the other parcel, and gave it a shake. A rustle was heard from within. _I think I know what this is going to be_ Mai thought. _They wouldn't dare!

_This time, Naru was more hesitant to open the package. Everyone's eyes were on him. He looked around at the group of people so patiently waiting for his reaction. He sighed, then ripped off the paper, and let his present fall into his lap._

"_WHAT'S THAT YOU HAVE THERE NARU?" Lin burst into laughter again. More giggles and laughter echoed in the small office as everyone cracked up once more. Naru held up his new present, and took one look at Ayako._

"_Well, someone has a clear sense of humour."_

_Ayako, between hiccups said, "You should put it on, it matches your shirt!"_

_Mai took a look at Naru, holding the Hawaiian lei delicately between his fingers. _I wish I had a camera_ she thought. _This is adorable!

_As the office cooled down, Mai slipped out to make everyone some tea. _Come on Mai, there HAS to be something! Think think think! _She sighed._ I'm not actually doing any thinking... am I?_ Another sigh. This was going to be a long day. _At least it's going to be a load of laughs. I mean, even Naru's fighting the urge to smile for once!_ Mai finished with the tea, and placed the cups on a tray, and walked in. Naru had yet another present in his hands._

"_This one's from me,_" _said John happily._

_Mai placed the tray on Naru's desk, and everyone grabbed a cup. Mai loved spending time with her closest friends. Seeing them all together, smiling and having a blast was pure happiness for Mai. If only she could make Naru happy... and at this rate, that would take a damn lot of time._

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_**AN: So, I'm going out now, so I had to cut this short haha. It seems that this is going to be a long(er) story! I was only hoping for two chapters! I'll update regularly, I promise! (I need to write but I'm going out in 15 mins sighsigh.) Having a "Lost" marathon.**_

_**PS: Naru's a babe. **_


	3. Mai's Present

**Hmm well sorry for the slow update, but I've been working on another story (a bit of fluff really) but I think its adorable haha. I'll post it soon, so look out for it! **

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_Mai scurried off to the kitchen to grab some more tea and tissues, giggling like a little girl. Well, everyone was after seeing what John had bought Naru. A bra to match the g-string. _Who would have known John and Lin spent time outside of work together?_ Mai wondered. _It was a pretty big bra too... so maybe Lin and John like women with big assets?_ Mai giggled some more._

_After finishing up with the tea, and drying her own eyes, she made her way back into the office. She laid the tea on the desk, and everyone reached for one and took long gulps._

"_Man, I needed one of those," Monk said in between sips. _

_Masako put her empty cup back on the desk, and looked at Mai._

"_So Mai, now it's your turn."_

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The others laid their cups back down, and all looked at Mai with eager faces. Naru glanced up from his pile of presents, and met her gaze.

"Um... well," Mai started. What could she say?

"...Well... I was planning on giving Naru my present after lunch."

The others groaned.

"Mai!" John complained. "We're all having a blast, come on, one more present"

"Yeah Mai!" Ayako said.

Masako stood there grinning slyly at Mai. Geez that girl annoys me. _She thinks she can get away with anything! _Mai thought. She looked at Naru. He looked back, expressionless.

"No, my present is going to be saved until after lunch." she replied.

More groans from the others.

"Well, we better get this lunch over and done with," Naru said quickly, and leaving his presents on his chair, got up and left the office, with the others following.

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It was getting nearer the end of lunch, and the gang were beginning to stack plates and dishes and pay for their meal. Mai was getting restless. She had do something in the next few minutes or Naru would be offended. Masako, Ayako and Bou-san were off somewhere reminiscing about the earlier events of the day, while Lin had gone to pay the bill. It was just her and Naru sat there at the table in silence. Naru yawned, and covered his hand with his mouth. Mai could feel some kind of tension between them.

"Um, Naru?"

He looked at her out of the corner of his eyes, "Yes, Mai?"

"You know how I said I'll give you your present later?"

"Yes."

"Well..." Mai said blushing. "I... never really got you a present."

*Silence*

Mai went redder.

"Look, Naru," she started, "I never got you a present because..."

"It's no problem Mai, you know I hate birthdays." he replied calmly.

"No, you don't understand, Naru," she continued.

"Mai, I said it doesn't matter, I'm grateful you didn't get me one... after seeing what the others bought for me," Naru scowled. He got up from the table, and headed towards the diner door.

"Naru!" Mai called after him, before getting up and running towards him. She wasn't going to let him think she didn't care. After all, she did have the perfect present for him... just... she was scared of his reaction. She'd wanted to give him this ever since she fell for him.

Naru had opened the door, and leaned against the diner wall outside. Mai caught up with him, and grabbed his arm.

"Naru, listen."

He looked at her straight in the eyes. Mai felt weak. He was her boss, her colleague, her Naru. If she didn't do this now... someone else probably would. She grumbled at the thought of Masako with Naru. Mai gulped. Naru was still looking her in the eyes. He furrowed his eyebrows, but still kept her gaze. Mai lifted her hands and placed them on Naru's shoulders. He didn't take his eyes off her. She raised herself on her tiptoes, and moved in closer to Naru. Their faces were only inches apart. Naru raised his eyebrows, but still didn't move. Mai leaned in closer. Their lips brushed slightly...

Naru turned away. Mai let go of him and turned bright red. _Mai, how could you? He's your boss, and he clearly doesn't like you! How could you be so stupid!_

"Mai," he started.

"I'm so sorry Naru!" Mai whispered, almost on the verge of tears.

He grabbed her by the shoulders and made her face him.

"Mai, Mai, it's not you. There is nothing wrong with you at all."

Mai held back her tears. She looked at him.

"Mai," Naru raised his hand, and lifted her chin so they were facing each other. "You... you deserve better."

Mai gasped. _How could he say that?_

"Naru! What are you saying? Why... what?"

He glanced away for a second. For a second, it looked like he was going to burst into tears. He turned back to face Mai.

"Mai... I'm a self-centred, cold hearted... well... narcissist. You even said it yourself."

Mai looked into Naru's eyes.

"Naru, I like you for who you are. Even if you are a narcissist. It's why I like you silly!" she smiled at him.

Naru looked a little taken aback. Mai noticed his cheeks go a little rosy. She took this opportunity to reach her arms around his neck, and pull him close into a hug, resting her head on his chest. Naru's arms slid down to her lower back, and pulled her in even closer. Mai's heart began beating like crazy; Naru had that affect on her. She was going to try this again. She lifted her head to face his. He leaned down so that they were millimetres away. She reached up, and pressed her lips against his. The first kiss was gentle and delicate, but when they pulled away, Mai could see the desperation in his eyes. He pulled her in closer for a deeper kiss, both of them coming up for breath occasionally. Mai had never felt this happy in her whole life. Naru's arms tightened around her, if that was possible, and pulled her into his chest.

"Happy Birthday Naru," she breathed.

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**OMG corn ending. But yeah, like I said, I'm working on another story (fluff most likely) so I kinda forgot about this one bahaha. And also WHAT WAS WITH JOHN'S PRESENTTTTT. (It's like 1am here so I'm kinda getting a little low on ideas, but I want this posted asap) so yaaaaah. Sorry **

**Grr Masako. Just leave Mai alone would you _  
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**Anyway, thankyou all for reading and reviewing, it was a pleasure, my first ff in a very very long time! Thankyou sooo much, and I'll see you all soon!**

**-b**


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